Organizational Behavior in Software Companies
It is difficult to make generalizations about organizationalbehavior. Organizational structure and thus organizational behavior canvary greatly from one corporation to another, one particular geographic orregional corporate climate to another, and one industry to another. Evenwithin the particular organizational climate of companies that developcomputer software, considerable environmental and managerial differencesare evident between, for instance established companies such as Microsoftand upstart companies such as 'Red Hat.' For instance, Microsoft's currentdominance of the proprietary software market and 'Red Hat's' stress uponnonproprietary software create a distinct divide between these company'scorporate culture as well as the magnitude of Microsoft's sheer largess. Thus, different corporate cultures can be created between companiesfor many reasons, even within the software industry. For instance, becauseof the different salaries commanded by the average employee, and thedifferent corporate ethos advanced by the individuals at the head of thecorporation, a different 'ambience' or set of values may be stressed,
Even human resourcesjob can be rendered more difficult by the fact that members of this branchhave considerably different educational and temperamental backgrounds thaneither the financial staff or the technical development staff. Again, generalizations may be difficult to make, because some softwarecompanies may be more developmentally oriented, and place a higher level offavoritism upon technical employees, while some software companies mayrecycle more aspects of existing technology and have more of an eye on the'bottom line' and making short term rather than long-term profits in theindustry. These fact being duly noted, there is still a general, distinctorganizational climate of companies that develop software, as opposed tocompanies that are purely creative in focus, such as advertising agencies,for example, or purely numerical in nature, such as financial investmentbanking powerhouses such as Goldman and Sachs. Also, chief executives do not only determinehiring and firing of employees. Perhaps the most keydistinction in software companies' organizational structure is thecommunication or lack thereof that exists within different branches of thecompany. formally or informally, between members of the staff and members of thestaff and their supervisors. Who is right' The technical staff may have a certain feeling ofjustified arrogance, as without their creative knowledge and technicalinput, the company's purpose and mission would not exist, would essentiallyhave no product to market. Perhaps the head of the company is often of asimilar background as this aspect of the staff and agrees with theseindividuals manufacturing the new technology. Authority isoften diffuse at software companies, because of the inability to say whichaspect of the staff, financial or technical, holds sway or is moreimportant than the other to the company's survival. However, the financialbranches know that all companies must make a profit, regardless of thenature of the product. The human resource staff may mediate between both aspects of thecompany, but often their job is made difficult by the diffuse rather thanhierarchical top-down structure of most software companies. They also set a tone that can be quiteunique, even within firms of the same industry, depending on whether theexecutive got his or her start within the industry, or is a 'hired gun'with an MBA, determined to turn a profit wherever he or she may find him orherself. However, theperception of software companies as more diffuse in hierarchy and powerremains, as well as the more casual, less formal, but also more conflictedand creative style of leadership and organization that makes them excitingbut often difficult places for all to work, regardless of one's placementin the technical, financial, or human resources departments. Consider this scenario-budget cuts may be necessary to turn aprofit in the next financial quarter, while the technical staff isprimarily interested in generating a new, quality product over the longterm.
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